Vietnam has signaled its continued support for the country’s burgeoning resort casino industry with a plan that would allow monies invested in infrastructure in the projects’ designated economic development zones to be counted against the government’s minimum capital requirement for the resorts.
The new proposal, which still needs to be ratified by the national legislature, would modify the provision in the existing gaming decree that says the resorts must comprise an investment of at least US$2 billion, half of which must be disbursed before a license is issued.
The change could go a long way toward stimulating future investment as well as removing a major obstacle for investors in destination-scale casinos already on the drawing board, like those planned for the Van Don Special Economic Zone at Ha Long Bay in the north of the country, a UNESCO World Heritage site that is scenically beautiful and popular with tourists but is handicapped by poor infrastructure.
Sun Group, the Vietnamese developer that holds the license to operate a resort complex with gaming in the zone𑁋which is located about 180 kilometers from Hanoi and 150 kilometers from the Chinese border𑁋is expected to be an immediate beneficiary, having already invested a reported US$840.5 million in a new Van Don International Airport and a 60-kilometer expressway slated for completion in 2021.
Plans for the group’s resort, to be developed in phases on 2,000 hectares, include hotels and residences, a theme park, meetings and exhibitions space, a sports complex, a golf course and up to eight casinos.
“One of the unique factors is the land border with China, which no other regulated jurisdiction other than Macau has,” noted Ben Lee, a Macau-based gaming industry consultant. “Despite the political differences, it has been an attractive destination for the Chinese, with a unique culture and at reasonable price points.”
Van Don also would benefit by hosting one of only two casinos in the country open to Vietnamese citizens. The other is Corona Resort & Casino at the opposite end of the country, on Phu Quoc island off the coast of Cambodia in the Gulf of Thailand, where Vietnamese comprised a reported 45 percent of visitation last year.
The area around Da Nang on the central coast of the South China Sea is another hot spot. A planned $4 billion resort complex, Hoiana, as it’s called, backed in part by Macau junket giant Sun City and Hong Kong conglomerate Chow Tai Fook, opened a portion of its first phase, including a casino and hotel, in June.
The country’s eight casinos have more than doubled their revenue in the past three years, from VND1.19 trillion in 2017 ($51.3 million) to VND2.5 trillion ($107.8 million) in 2019, according to Ministry of Finance figures cited by local media.
That’s expected to continue to rise as Vietnam grows in popularity among travelers across East and Southeast Asia. Last year, the country attracted a record 18 million tourists, with China as the main source market accounting for 5.8 million of the total, followed by South Korea with 4.2 million.
